The 2025 Utah Big Game Application Guidebook is available online and at Division offices. You may apply in Utah by visiting www.wildlife.utah.gov, clicking on the Hunting tab, and going to the “Permits and Drawings” section. You may also apply via telephone by calling any Division of Wildlife Resources office. The application timeframe for all big game species is March 20-April 24, 2025. Draw results will be posted by May 15th.

Up to four hunters can apply as a group for limited-entry deer, elk, and antelope hunts and general season deer hunts. Group applications are not permitted for management buck or once-in-a-lifetime (OIL) species. Non-residents and residents can apply together in a group, but if there are no non-resident permits available for your selected hunts, the application will not be considered.

You must have a valid Utah hunting license to apply, and you can purchase one at the time you apply. Hunting licenses are valid for 365 days from the date of purchase. If you time your applications correctly, you could purchase one license and apply for two years. If you draw a permit, you do not need a current hunting license to hunt, but you will need one to apply. If you wish to modify your application, you may now do so online prior to the deadline. If you plan to apply for bonus or preference points only, that period will be during the antlerless application timeline in June.

Utah issues 50% of the limited-entry and once-in-a-lifetime permits to applicants with the maximum number of points who applied for that hunt. The other 50% are awarded randomly to the rest of the applicants who did not receive a bonus permit. Applicants in the random draw will have an extra chance in the draw for each bonus point accumulated over the years. The caveat is that if there is an odd number of permits available in the draw, the majority of permits will be awarded in the bonus draw to the maximum point holders. For example, if five permits are available, three of those permits will be issued in the bonus draw to the applicants with the most points and the remaining two permits will be issued in the random draw. Utah issues 10% of their draw permits to non-residents.

Adults must purchase a $120 non-refundable non-resident hunting license to apply. The youth license is $34. The application fees are non-refundable and cost $16 for each species you apply for. You will not be charged the full cost of the permit unless you are successful in the draw.

Utah accepts American Express, Discover, MasterCard, and Visa credit or debit cards. Credit cards used to apply in the big game draw must be valid through June 2025. To change the credit or debit card associated with your application, call 800-221-0659 or update the credit card information at www.utah-hunt.com.

Utah has a bonus point system for limited-entry deer, elk, antelope, bison, mountain goat, moose, and both bighorn sheep species. Bonus points are species specific and are not transferable between species. The bonus point system is designed to increase the chances of drawing a permit. Every year that you apply and are unsuccessful, you will receive a bonus point for that species. You may also purchase points only. In essence, for each point you have, you are entered one additional time into the drawing.

The draw odds we list are split into two categories – random (without respect to bonus points) and number of points needed to be considered in the preference draw in 2024. The random odds we list are computed by subtracting the permits given to people with the most points and then dividing the number of remaining applicants by the number of remaining permits. The number of points needed to draw column depicts the number of points it took last year to be considered in the preference draw. If there is only one permit available for a particular hunt, it will be issued randomly and there will not be a max point permit for that hunt. The random draw odds do not take into account how many bonus points any of the applicants have, thus they are not the true odds of drawing. This is to give you a relative idea of how hard a unit will be to draw. Each individual’s odds of drawing are different, depending on their number of bonus points accumulated.

Eligible youth must turn 12 years old by December 31, 2025 and must be 17 years of age or younger on July 31st to apply as a youth for all big game permits. General season any bull elk permits (any legal weapon, muzzleloader, and multi-season) will be unlimited for youth hunters.

Twenty percent of Utah's general season buck deer permits are allocated to youth in the drawing. Youth who obtain a general season any legal weapon deer permit may also hunt during the archery and muzzleloader hunts. For youth hunters who are unsuccessful in the drawings, additional over-the-counter youth archery permits will be available at 8:00 a.m. on July 8th at www.wildlife.utah.gov and from license agents and Division offices.

Youth can apply for a youth any bull permit. The youth any bull hunt takes place September 13-23 on any bull units only. This season is prior to the rifle general any bull hunt and is designed to give youth who draw a permit the chance to hunt with a rifle during the rut. Be aware, any bull units may be limited in the amount of public land, access, or elk populations.

Up to four youth can apply together for youth any bull elk permits. For general season deer, up to four youth can apply to hunt together in a youth-only group application. It’s important to note that if you want a youth to be considered for the 20% of general deer tags set aside for youth, do not apply them in a group with an adult.

Utah has a mentor program for youth ages 12-17 which allows a qualifying adult to mentor a youth during a hunt by sharing a big game permit. The mentor can be a non-resident, but they must accompany the minor. Both may carry weapons into the field, but only one animal may be harvested. For more information regarding the mentor program for youth, go to www.wildlife.utah.gov/mentoring.

Utah does not allow archers to use electronic rangefinding devices attached to their bows to hunt big game. Archery equipment may be used during any big game hunt, except a muzzleloader hunt, provided that the minimum bow pull is 30 pounds at the draw or the peak, and broadheads must have two or more sharp edges that cannot pass through a 7/8” ring. Expandable broadheads are legal. Draw-lock devices and crossbows are not legal.

Utah no longer allows variable power scopes to be used on muzzleloaders. Muzzleloaders may be equipped with open sights, red dot, or a 1x power scope on muzzleloader-only hunts. Muzzleloaders may be used during any big game hunt, except during archery season. In-line muzzleloaders are legal as well as the use of sabots. Nothing less than .40 caliber muzzleloaders may be used for big game animals. Check the regulations for other restrictions, such as bullet weights.

HAMSS stands for Handgun, Archery, Muzzleloader, Shotgun and Straight-Walled Cartridge hunts. Handguns must not have a barrel over 15” in length, be under 24” in overall length, and not have any fixed, detachable, or collapsible buttstocks. Muzzleloaders can use centerfire primers and loose or pelletized black powder or black powder substitute. None of this equipment can be equipped with a scope of any kind. Straight-walled cartridges must have a minimum bullet diameter of .35 caliber and a minimum case length of at least 1.16 inches may be used. No semi-automatic rifle, scope or other optics, or electronics are allowed.

New for 2025, Utah created a few restricted weapon-only hunts for mule deer. Beaver/West, Boulder/Kaiparowits, and Cache will all be considered as primitive weapon units. The archery definition is the same as the archery definition above. The muzzleloader definition removes the ability to use a shotgun (209) or centerfire primer for ignition. Matchlock, wheellock, and percussion/musket caps are only allowed. The ignition may be fully enclosed. There are no other restrictions on the powder or projectile type. The definition restricts the use of any mounted scope of any kind and no semi-automatic rifles. The Thousand Lakes unit will have the above restrictions but also have bows restricted to single-stringed long bows or recurve bows without pulleys, cables, or cams.

The Division cannot guarantee access to any private land. Utah has a walk-in access program where the Division has leased private land for hunting privileges for public recreation. For more information, go to https://wildlife.utah.gov/fishing/walk-in-access.html or the previously noted Hunt Planner site.

Non-resident owners of ATVs, off-­highway motorcycles, or snowmobiles who bring them into Utah must obtain a non-resident permit for their machine. Some states offer reciprocity, meaning there is a mutual agreement between states not to charge non-residents fees. More information can be found at https://stateparks.utah.gov/activities/off-highway-vehicles/non-resident-ohv-permits/.

All OHV operators are required to pass a Utah Off-Highway Vehicle Education Course. This course is online at https://secured.utah.gov/utoutdoordirectory/Forms/Page/utoutdoordirectory/utohvcourse/0 and is free for adults 18 and over. For all youth under 18 years of age, there is an online youth safety course that is required and costs $35. The adult course is valid for the rest of your life once passed.